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Jacamo is branching out

Plus-size fashion retailer Jacamo for men and Simply Be for women will open its first shop in London as part of a nationwide expansion to open 25 stores.

Angela Spindler, the new chief executive of parent company N Brown who joined three months ago, said: “London is definitely on our target list, but because there is so much competition for space we can’t put a timescale on it.”

The decision comes as the previously online and catalogue-only retailer saw sales jump 8% to £409.6 million and pre-tax profits rise 7.1% to £45 million in the six months to end of August.

The seven stores already open did make a small loss last year, but Spindler is keen to build a multichannel business where customers can collect and return online orders to stores. Two stores in Leeds and Derby will be opened by the end of the year by Jacamo, which has linked with former England cricketer Andrew Flintoff to promote a range of clothing.

Customer orders hit four million, up 4.3%, and Spindler, the former director of George at Asda and Debenhams, is keen to expand internationally, particularly into the United States.